Bedside Books

Here is a list of some of the books by the side of my bed - within easy reach in case I get time to read! - and the reason each book is there.

Ayn Rand's Atlas Shrugged is ON TOP of the stack. Although I don't have time right now to read this 1168-page tome, I must have it at my bedside right now to at least dip into. It is a voice of clarity and reason amid the economic craziness in the US and now the world. If I could make one book mandatory reading for every politician and everyone involved in finance, this would be it. Had they all read it, we would not be in the mess we are in right now!!

I always have a book about math or a mathematician nearby- because like Pascal I find math clears my mind and heals me with its purity and logic. This one I am currently reading because it is light and fun and because I am giving a conference talk at the end of the month on making math fun for elementary students, and this book contains material that will tie into my talk really well.

The Shack too I have already read, but it, like Atlas Shrugged, is one I need to go back to and will go back to over and over again. I know there is a big hoopla over this book right now - pro and con. I'm thankful I read it the first time before hearing any of that. I don't use the phrase "life changing" lightly, but I put this book in that category for myself.

The reading for my next Inklings Book Club meeting is in here: Leaf by Niggle - a shorter work by Tolkien than the familiar Hobbit and Lord of the Rings trilogy. Tolkien is ALWAYS good.

I have this one by the side of my bed because a good friend is a fan of John Piper and recommended this book to me. I haven't made much progress, but it remains by the side of my bed.

I chose to post this today because I LOVE books AND because in my first post I wrote that my blog would probably consist of lots of lists (I like lists), but it turns out it hasn't, so there you have it - a list!